Amid the ongoing backlash to Nintendo’s shock pricing for the Switch 2 and Mario Kart World, two former Nintendo PR managers have described the situation as "a true crisis moment for Nintendo."
In a video on their YouTube channel, former Nintendo of America PR managers Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang criticized Nintendo's approach to revealing the $449.99 price tag of the Switch 2 and the $79.99 price of Mario Kart World. "I don’t want to blow things out of proportion, but this does feel like a true crisis moment for Nintendo," Ellis stated.
Mario Kart World isn’t the only game for the Nintendo Switch 2 priced at $79.99. Other titles, such as The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, also carry this higher price point. Nintendo has also faced criticism for charging for the Switch 2 tutorial game, Welcome Tour, which fans believe should be a free pack-in, much like Astro's Playroom on the PlayStation 5, which serves as a free tech demo for the DualSense controller.
The anger over pricing has even affected Nintendo’s Treehouse livestreams, where viewers have flooded the chat with demands to "DROP THE PRICE."
Ellis and Yang were particularly vocal about how Nintendo disclosed the prices of the Switch 2 and its games. They highlighted the absence of pricing information in the Direct itself as a "deliberate" omission that led to confusion and misinformation as fans sought pricing details elsewhere.
Nintendo Switch 2 System and Accessories Gallery
91 Images
Yang suggested that the pricing was "intentionally omitted from the Direct for a reason," but criticized the execution, noting that fans were left to piece together information from various sources. Ellis added, "It just shows some disrespect to the consumer, where, ‘oh, you just saw the Direct you’re so excited, you’re just gonna throw your money at us blindly, you’re not going to even ask the question of how much it cost because you’re so excited, aren’t you?’"
Yang further remarked, "It’s a little bit degrading almost to the intelligence of the consumer."
The former NOA communications staff also discussed Nintendo’s failure to address the pricing concerns through a public statement or in interviews with the press, which has led to rampant speculation and misinformation. "They are enabling the story to get out of hand, out of control," Yang said, with Ellis adding, "They have lost control of this."
Ellis and Yang suggested that Nintendo's current approach lacks the consumer mindfulness it once had, following the retirement of former NOA boss Reggie Fils-Aimé and the tragic loss of former Nintendo head Satoru Iwata.
Nintendo’s communications team is now expected to recommend an official statement, but Yang noted that the approval process would be challenging, involving many people before reaching current Nintendo boss Shuntaro Furukawa. The company is also out of practice in communicating with its community and press, having not faced such negativity since the Nintendo 3DS price debacle in 2011.
There is concern for staff at public-facing Switch 2 hands-on sessions, where fans may ask reasonable questions about pricing. Any response from staff could be misconstrued as Nintendo’s official stance if shared online.
What happens next remains uncertain, but neither Ellis nor Yang expect a price drop for the Switch 2 or its games before launch.
For more information, check out everything announced at the Switch 2 Nintendo Direct, and what the experts have to say about the Switch 2 price and Mario Kart World’s $80 price tag.
